INSCYD is for all athletes.

INSCYD Metabolic Testing

Teamon INSCYD

FOR WHO // ATHLETES

INSCYD is for all athletes.
INSCYD will benefit your training schedule and performance with both a scientific foundation and precise predictability.
With INSCYD you’ll get full picture of your physical capacities and also a prediction of your training and racing outcomes.

The performance you are looking for is composed of a variety of components and metrics, but if you only focus on FTP, heart rate zones, or keep training only according to your Rate of Perceived Exertion, you’ll miss accuracy and efficiency.

For example, with INSCYD you can finally understand the interactions between your aerobic system and your fuelling needs. Do you wonder, “How much should I consume per hour in order to maintain my performance?” With INSCYD, you’ll know.

INSCYD takes into account, and connect to one another, the most important metrics for training purposes:

VO_2max
Anaerobic threshold
Lactate accumulation and recovery
Fat and carbohydrates combustion
Recovery
VLa_max (or glycolytic capacity)

Each of the above metrics measured by INSCYD is critical to performance and remember, each sport performance is predictable and can be broken down to these fundamental elements.

Take VLa_max, for example. Although you might have never heard of it, VLa_max. It is the single most important measurement to enhance your performance. VLa_max is the maximum production of lactic acid in your blood and gives you a complete understanding of your anaerobic metabolism (which yes, is crucial in endurance events, too!). VO2_max is aerobic, now we know the anaerobic piece, which turns out to be at least as important.

Application in training

Designing specific training programs based on lack of pyruvate (LOP) and lactate accumulation has proven to be a very successful concept in the past decade. Such regimes can increase buffering capacity, lactate exchange, and lactate combustion.

Interval Programs

If you are targeting a specific intensity, based on a particular race or goal you are trying to achieve, choose this intensity from the LOP and lactate accumulation graph. Then decide the time that the interval should last for. Simply multiplying this time by the actual lactate accumulation value will tell you amount of lactate that is going to accumulate during the effort. By then choosing the interval recovery intensity, you can see how quickly the athlete can combust the accumulated lactate.

With this information, you can then create individual interval programs based on the current physical status of your athlete, and the goals you want to achieve in future.

WHAT WILL YOU GET:

5weeks bike specific training program (4weeks on + 1 week recovery and retest)
VO2max
VLamax – the most important metric for endurance athletes – this governs power at threshold, use of fat vs. Carb, and lactate production/combustion.
Fuel substrate utilization – in the muscle = the most accurate way to test
Ability to visualize training adaptions. This ensures the proper training methods are being implemented to get the greatest gains in performance, for the specific event the athlete is training for.
Lactate accumulation and combustion – optimize each workout with the exact ratio (time and wattage) to ensure maximal adaptions. Example – 5×3 at VO2max…its not accurate to do 3 min on and 3 min. recovery, if you are accumulating 2 mmol of lactate/min. and only clearing .5 mmol/min. You would need to do about 10 min. of recovery to get ideal recovery in that case (as a rough example). A met cart will never tell you this.

HOW:

Testing will be done 100% remotely using zwift (ZMO file) or trainer roads (FIT file) will be provided.

HOW TO ADD INSCYD TEST PROTOCOL IN YOUR ZWIFT

Zwift workouts are simple “.zwo” files, so sharing them just requires knowing how to access the file system on your Zwift device.

Add to your library: Any .zwo files moved to your Documents\Zwift\Workouts\<> folder will be added to your custom workouts menu the next time you launch the game.

FINDING THE INSCYD TEST PROTOCOL IN ZWIFT. After following the steps above, your workouts will show up under the Custom Workouts section the next time you start Zwift.

IMPORTANT REMINDERS
1) All intervals (all 4) must be done SEATED, in the same conditions (indoor, outdoor), same bike, position (drops, tops, extensions), same powermeter, and on the same gradient (hill vs. flat) – for all the intervals.*

2) Calibrate powermeter

3) Bike computer fully charge and set to record data every second (no smart recording!). Make a zero offset calibration before each test if required, and ensure you record your heart rate (if you have a heart rate monitor).

Day 1 : Start from 7 min warm-up and complete the whole warm-up as per program. For Day 1, do only Tests 1, 2 and 3 as detailed below after warm-up

Test 1 : 21 second, maximal effort, while seated. Try the gears beforehand. Follow zwift instructions. After interval, please spin at 50% of FTP for 12 minutes. prior to 3 min. effort.

Test 2 : 3:00-minute effort – maximal effort. After effort, please spin at 50% of FTP for 15 minutes prior to 6:00 min. effort.

Test 3 : 6:00-minute maximal effort. After effort, recover, prep for day 2 of test.

Complete Day 1 with a cool down for 6 mins Zone 1

For Day 2, do only Warmup and Test 4. Start from 7 min warm-up and complete the whole warm-up till 20sec free ride then click TAB in your keyboard to skip forward to 20min @ 50% FTP.

Test 4 : 10 minutes maximal effort that you can hold for the entire duration.

Complete Day 2 with a cool down for 6 mins Zone 1